In general, a terminal for electronically generating, processing, exchanging and reproducing information or data for a user is denoted as user terminal device. For example, the data or information can be text, voice, music, pictures, animations, films or multimedia data. Known mobile battery driven user terminal devices are in particular mobile stations for a communication via a mobile telecommunication network according to the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication) or UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) standard, MP3 player (playback devices for audio data according to the Moving Pictures Experts Group Audio Layer 3 Format), PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), Laptops, digital cameras, camcorder and navigation systems.
These user terminal devices increasingly provide multiple applications to a user. For example, mobile stations meanwhile usually comprise a digital camera and a MP3 player. Further examples are MP3 player and navigation systems which permit displaying digital pictures or videos, PDAs comprising mobile telephony or mobile stations with integrated navigation system. In addition many user terminal devices provide interfaces, for example according to the Bluetooth or USB (Universal Serial Bus) standard for using functions or applications of external devices.
Usually a single-use battery or a rechargeable accumulator is used as battery in a battery powered user terminal device. The battery status is displayed to a user by means of a battery status indicator. In this way the user is enabled to exchange a battery or recharge an accumulator in due time. Furthermore, the user can coordinate the usage of the user terminal device with the battery status.
In order to avoid an adverse complete discharge, a so-called deep discharge, of an accumulator and to terminate active applications secure and without data loss an automatic power-off of the user terminal is typically carried out at a predetermined threshold value. In addition, an early deactivation of applications or functions with low priority is well-known with battery driven user terminal devices providing multiple applications. These applications or functions are deactivated before reaching the above-mentioned threshold value in order to achieve a longer remaining runtime of the battery for important applications. For this procedure, for example, further threshold values can be used. Current mobile telephones, for example, firstly deactivate or switch off a camera, then a Bluetooth interface, and finally telephony and thereby the mobile telephone. In this way a longer runtime of the preferred telephony application of the mobile station is achieved.
The European patent specification EP 1 202 457 B1 describes a method for switching off battery supplied mobile stations. For this purpose the current battery voltage is periodically detected. The current state of the battery can be symbolically displayed to the user by a battery symbol on a display of the mobile station. The voltage supply is switched off when falling under a pre-set shut down voltage. This action is previously indicated to a user by an alarm signal, for example a flashing battery symbol. Different pre-set shut down voltages are possible for different operation states like talking mode or TX transmission burst.
The known user terminal devices with multiple applications and a deactivation of an individual application depending on the battery status have the disadvantage that it is irreproducible for the user if and when an individual application or functions is deactivated. These user terminal devices have a battery status indicator showing the user a charging status of the battery and indicating upcoming deactivation to the user. But it is not recognizable for a user by means of the battery status indicator, when and which application of the user terminal device is deactivated, because a deactivation depends on power requirement of active applications and the usage behavior of the user.
Thus it has been a long felt and unsolved need to avoid disadvantages of the prior art and to inform a user in an effective and user-friendly way about a deactivation of individual applications.